Well, well, well...

Departure day has arrived! It is 5:15 PM, I'm sitting in Marie's apartment, totally packed and ready to go! It's insane!

So, as my time ticks away here (I am scheduled to depart for the airport in one hour), I thought I should actually explain, as best I can, what I am getting ready to do.

Starting Monday, I will spend the next four weeks in Buenos Aires. Four hours a day I will be taking Spanish classes at a small language institute. The program has also arranged a homestay for me, which I am VERY excited about. All I know about my host is that she's a 70-year-old woman named Rosa who has a cat! Oh boy! I guess living with a 70-year-old may sound like a drag to some people, but I can't wait. And Rosa is also providing breakfast and dinner for me every day, so I will get a real taste of Argentinian home cookin'.

Most other questions you probably have right about now, I probably do not have an answer to, but here's a run down of the most frequently asked questions:

Do you speak Spanish? No! Not at all. That's why I am taking Spanish classes for four weeks. Seemed like a practical thing to do if I want to travel all over Spanish speaking countries. Plus, I really want to learn Spanish. Brilliant.

How many people are in your program? Don't know. Think it's very small. People can sign up one week at a time, so I assume there's frequent turnover of classmates.

Do you know anybody down there? Oddly enough, I do have two Nashville-connected acquaintances, Sam Nadler and Will Bruno. Whether or not I will actually see them at all is hard to say. We shall see.

What are you going to do after your program is over? Don't know, but I imagine I will go down one of two paths. 1) get a job in Buenos Aires and stay there for a while. 2) TRAVEL. Option 2 is really what I am hoping to do, but I'm not ruling out option 1. I may love Buenos Aires and want to hang out for a bit. I have packed myself in one (ONE!) large backpack, so if I want to travel, I am not going to be weighed down with a bunch of stuff. I've never been so possessionless in my life. It's crazy!

How long are you going to be gone? Indefinitely. I have about six months blocked off in my head, but I am not making any plans, so it could be less time, could be more.

Are you coming back to New York? I'm 99% sure that no is the answer to this one, but again, I'm not making any plans, so who knows. I have shipped all of my stuff home to Nashville, so it's definitely not sitting in storage here, waiting for me to come back. I want to live somewhere a little greener, I think.

Are you ready? Actually, YES. I am ready. Or at least I am as ready as one can be for an unplanned adventure.

Okay, so I am going to go talk to Marie face until time to go! And then she and Michelley are going to ride out to JFK with me. What good friends I have.

Next time I write, it will be from Buenos Aires. Crazy!